We are pleased to announce an exhibition of works by Canadian artists Nicole Katsuras at Moore Gallery, 80 Spadina Avenue suite 404 in Torontoopening at 2:00p.m.on Saturday, April 6, 2013.

Moore Gallery is pleased to present a solo exhibition of Nicole Katsuras. This is the artist’s fifth exhibit at Moore Gallery. For this show; Colour in Space, the Toronto-based painter showcases several Large to small sized works full of a radical dynamism. Working with central motifs, Katsuras manages to create strikingly vibrant, texturally tactile works that toe the line between pure abstraction and referential imagery. These works masterfully evoke a tone that redefines the relationship between artistic sophistication, pastiche, playfulness, and confidence.

One of her most powerful works in this show is Sleeping Cobras. Here paint is used as confetti and icing to create an activated surface. Slathering hot pink in quick horizontal strokes frames a dramatic scene of intensity. Around the peripheries is paint acting like stitching along the edges and white starbursts that highlight the center. Using a wild set of techniques this work is calculated controlled chaos. Other works like Voltage explode as candy coated rainbow that emanates from the center. Revisiting childhood imagery and fantasy this work revels in sprawling textures that contour the central composition.

Road to Uzes reads a neon lit nocturne with thick passages of pink and white. Paint droops and nearly falls as it becomes a 3-dimensional, protruding from the surface. And the bright orange Of All The Moons, features 4 half-moon-like formations that ripple from the upper left hand side to the right corner alongside diagonal lines of intense movement zipping towards the edges.

Larger works like A Method Actor showcase Katsuras’ capacity to make big, bold gestures. Against a bright blue background, streaked swaths of red, earthy paint move up, down, left and right. When she works large, paint is forceful, dominant and shares a body relationship to mark making. Other large works like The Reserve are full of nature; not the representation of nature, but the physical impression one feels in its presence. This massive 84 x 72 inch piece reads as an impasto rainbow meets waterfall marked by thick, garland like globs of paint that dance on top of the surface.

Bordering on a maximalist approach, Katsuras shares a vision that is uniquely hers. This show is about paint. And for Katsuras, paint handling is hedonistic, peculiar and dare I say fun.

Nicole Katsuras received her BA from the University of Toronto and her MFA from Central Saint Martins. Her work has been exhibited in solo and group shows throughout North America and is in public and private collections in North America and Europe.

The artist will be present for the exhibition opening on Saturday, 6th April 2013.